3 Lists that curb "Paralyzing Perfectionism" from Transcendental Meditation

It may take a few weeks. But it WILL be perfect!

Godfather—film director Francis Ford Coppola and Apple CEO Steve Jobs are said to be "perfectionists." That means they fret every detail until they see precisely what they want before releasing a final product.

High standards may lead to long-lasting achievement. AND they can lead to anxiety so great we can't get projects done.

Or even start them.

It seems a fair number of spiritual-abuse veterans experience Paralyzing Perfectionism. Perfectionism so severe it cripples their life emotionally, in relationships, or career-wise. Sometimes we really up the ante by calling ourselves "procrastinators." Just to make sure we feel so bad we can't get out of bed.

"Lazy" people may not like work or care enough to do it. Paralyzed perfectionists care too much. Anything less than the "best" or "perfect" result just isn't bearable.

Our motto may as well be: If you can't be the best at something, just don't do it. 

I always had high standards before getting involved with Transcendental Meditation in my late teens. They led to high grades and ambitions. For the first few years of my TM career, those high standards led me into higher levels of the Org. I threw all my energies into advancing enlightenment and world peace. Secure in the "knowledge" I was achieving the most for myself and the world. And I was doing the right thing.

But in my later TM daze and especially after leaving the Movement, I found it gradually harder to finish projects. There were always tweaks that needed doing. And one more. And then one more.... Which led to slipped deadlines. And eventually to deadstops.

I'll write more about Paralyzing Perfectionism soon. But I suspect readers here are no strangers to the phenomenon. So I'd like to offer an easy trick that curbed these tendencies. And let me get on with my life.

I keep three lists with me always: Things To Do Now, Things To Do Later, and Things That Can Wait 'Til Next Lifetime.

Now means everything I have to attend to that day. Later means anything to do from tomorrow through my Bucket List things I want to do before I kick the bucket.

Now I have articles to write, errands to run, a support group to facilitate, and a new Now list to create for tomorrow. Later I have more articles to write, counseling clients to see, projects to plan. Next Lifetime? Wow. The longest list of all.

An example. I've always struggled with my weight—in fact, a hundred pounds would look better anywhere than on my body.

I know contemporary society judges fatness harshly. I know it holds me back in the world. I know it's bad for my health. I know it causes my family worry. But I have a lot I want to accomplish before my final curtain call.

Losing weight? Just not a high priority. Given my limited time, energy, health, and resources. Maybe next time....

Naturally, I require a tad more organization than that. (David Allen's Getting Things Done is my system.) But these three lists are necessary prerequisites before I can even begin to prioritize.

And I find them extremely freeing. Rather than frittering away limited time and attention span—as well as making Distraction and Confusion my new threesome—I always know what I need to focus on. More often than not, I do it.

There are so many things in my Next Lifetime list: playing piano, studying obscure physics, achieving financial comfort, projecting to the Astral Plane, trekking to Easter Island.

Oh, yeah. And attaining Enlightenment? That might as well be a thousand lifetimes down the pike!

If I have time to sneak in a few of my Next Lifetime goals this time around, hey, so much the better. But I ain't gonna sweat it.

Try this simple exercise.

1. Set aside an hour with no distractions—soon.
2. Whip out a sheet of paper and an erasable writing implement.
3. Start sorting everything you want to achieve into these three lists.
4. Optional: Enter them into a computer file where you can rearrange them to your heart's content.

I suspect many of you will find your anxiety level drop as you see a growing list of accomplishments day by day.

Just don't let this list project become so elaborate, so perfect, and so tedious that it keeps you from getting your true priorities done!

J.

Crossposted on TM-Free Blog and Facebook.

Yet Another Transcendental Meditation Advertorial at Huff Post

Not too much to add. Singer/songwriter Jimmy Demers has written a paean to Transcendental Meditation for his column at the Huffington Post—and the comments are filling up with kudos from TMers.

Natch.

No new information in the post, but those so inclined may wish to leave a comment. The HuffPost is read by hundreds of thousands of people every day and seems to be on a mission to promote TM, Deepak Chopra, and other similar "New Age" traditions.

I'd argue that TM isn't "New Age" in any meaningful sense of the word—but rather idiosyncratic and fundamental Hinduism.

But, hey, that's just my opinion.

J.

Transcendental Meditation Wikipedia Scandal Heats Up

Readers may be aware of the ongoing scandal at Wikipedia surrounding Transcendental Meditation—related pages.

TM Org members, including employees of Maharishi University of Management, are being investigated for working in tandem to subvert Wikipedia's generous, volunteer editing policies. The charge indicates TM editors are motivated to remove information neutral or critical about the TM Org and replace it with standard Movement propaganda.

This article first broke the scandal. (Hats off to a wonderful blog!) My article updated the Wikipedia information—and added other examples of TM astroturfing.

Apparently the saga continues! The investigation has moved on to the next stage. All editors involved—including TM Org editors—present their evidence here. Really worth reading!

The list of allegations against the TM Org editors will sound tiringly familiar:

Attacks, threats, plagiarism, disruption, distraction, lies, bias, abuse, vandalism, harrassment, false outrage, intellectual dishonesty, intimidation, inuendo, legal scare tactics, dishonesty, ad hominem attacks, McCarthyism, being secretive, inflammatory speech, passive aggression presented as pseudo-civility, cherry-picking favorable research results,...

Transcendental Meditation Marketer$ may actually have an agreed upon playbook.

As we know Tom Ball and Keith DeBoer have organized a group of "enlightened bloggers" to drown out any negative comments posted anywhere on the Internet critical of TM. Given that so many of the TM faithful use precisely the same techniques over and over and over, it seems likely that a playbook of some kind has been circulated among them by TM Central:

How to Stop a Known Critic

1. Begin by accusing the critic of having a conflict of interest.
   
2. Attack their character as unethical, immoral, mentally ill, insensitive, cruel, ethnically prejudiced, etc.
   
3. Repeat steps 1 & 2 until everyone else tires of the conversation.
   
4. Very Important: Make sure you have the last word!

How to Stop a New Critic

1. Suggest they do not have sufficient knowledge about TM to make intelligent criticisms—no matter how applicable or impressive their credentials.
   
2. Deny the credibility or veracity of any report or research not approved of by TM Central.
   
3. Attack the intelligence of the critic.
   
4. Feign false outrage over a trivial detail of the critic's argument or language—frequently claiming the critic is bigoted.
5. Feign ignorance of serious questions in order to circumvent changes to the article, such as when a critic asks about the basis of Hagelin's quantum-based ideology.
   
6. Feign ignorance of well-known principles in research, such as peer-review not being equivalent to acceptance.
   
7. Invoke a special status as a "victimized" minority, whom society doesn't understand.
8. Accuse the critic of being a "sock puppet" or in the employ of an "enemy" organization. [None exist to my knowledge. If one does, hey, I'm for hire!]
9. As the critic is now "known," attack them as a "known" critic. See "How to Stop a Known Critic" above.

Well-known TM critic Andrew Skolnick reports he has been harassed by TM legal and other representatives since 1991 because he wrote a critical article about TM research and researchers in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). His words about "TM's attack dogs" summarize the situation neatly:

If there is one "superpower" achieved through advanced TM training it is the power to tirelessly lie through one's teeth, as this shameless example demonstrates.... As long as TM's attack dogs are allowed to keep rewriting Wikipedia articles, this battle will continue ad nauseum and drive away contributors who decide to spend their time on more constructive projects.

Unfortunately, that is the TM Org's precise goal.

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

—Edmund Burke

J.

If You Do Transcendental Meditation Will You Look Like This?

Tucked into a Maharishi University of Management newsletter, Achievements, is the announcement:

More students at Maharishi University of Management are planning to become teachers of the Transcendental Meditation^® technique inspired partly by an increasing demand for teachers to teach at-risk children in schools around the world. [Emphasis added.]

Fortunately, they included pictures of what your children might grow up to look like.

Parents: Fair warning! You might want to ask the kids to leave the room—so you don't scare 'em!

Brandy C. Lee-Jacob, Ph.D. student in Maharishi Vedic Science. You'll note that women are encouraged to wear bright colors, especially red, in the TM Org.

It's considered more feminine, Vedically speaking.

Puki Freeberg, MUM alumna and Teacher of the Transcendental Meditation Technique. Puki is modeling an Indian sari, traditional female garb in India.

No lifestyle changes here!

Dr. Fred Travis, Chair of the Department of Maharishi Vedic Science. Sporting a "scientific" lab coat, Fred looks the picture of Vedic health.

Note to TM Marketer$: Guy could use a good spray-on tan!

Bobby Roth, Vice President of the David Lynch Foundation, and Head of Public Relations for TM Org for decades, explaining why TM costs money to learn. Bobby has endless YouTube videos that explain why TM is not a religion, how it changes the brain, and why you can't learn TM from a book.

Helpful stuff! Only viewed by a handful of people on the entire planet.

"Do," aka Marshall Applewhite, spiritual leader of Heaven's Gate suicide "religion," explaining why you should be "initiated." Shortly after this video was shot, White and 38 members committed mass suicide.

I just included him for comparison purposes.

Notice the eyes on all of these johnnies!

J.

Transcendental Meditation Members Are "Concerned" for You!

Do you find True Believing TMers are "concerned" for your well-being?

How does that make you feel?

If we dare to leave—much less raise an objection about sexual, emotional, or psychological abuse we and others experienced—they set out to destroy us, calling us pathological, bitter, unethical, demonic.

And, of course, the classic CRAY-Z.™®

First they cut us in half with a machine gun. Then they hand us a Band-Aid. With soft eyes and half-smiling lips—sneered in condolence. (Apologies to Apocalypse Now.)

We're so "concerned" for you. That much anger can't be good for you. Did you know that angry individuals live shorter, less happy lives?

Is it just me, or does that kind of "loving kindness" give you the creeps, too?

Help isn't help if it isn't asked for. It's intrusion.

Uninvited "concern" isn't an offer to heal. It's criticism. It's judgment. It's invasion.

Touchy-feely, New Age, spiritual language around "concern": Isn't it just poorly camouflaged passive aggression?

I wonder if a more "enlightened" approach might be for TMers to discuss points they disagree with, rather than attempting to outline our character flaws?

Frankly, I think that tranquil—even if firm—discussion is what outsiders would mistakenly expect from practitioners of "spiritual" traditions like Transcendental Meditation, Jetsumna Akhon Lhamo's KPC, Legioinairies of Christ.

Probably not Scientology.

One thing that was excruciating for me about being in the Transcendental Meditation Org for 23 years was the cultural belief that if you could identify an individual's character flaw(s)—no matter how insignificant—you could safely dismiss his or her thoughts, feelings, experience.

Because they were obviously stupid, crazy, or EVIL—if they disagreed with the Maharishi's doctrines.

Even though it's pretty safe to say that ALL the geniuses who changed history, in every field, had their character flaws.

In the end, only a few "enlightened" figures can be said to have contributed as significantly to progress as the "mentally ill."

"Human salvation lies in the hands of the creatively maladjusted." Matin Luther King, Jr.

After over 55 years of Transcendental Meditation, can you point to even one "enlightened" TM devotee who has had a major impact on the world?

I'm not sure "enlightenment" is all it's cracked up to be.

J.

P.S. Join the CRIPPLE REVOLUTION!

Crossposted at FaceBook

Transcendental Meditation Astroturf Campaigns

Readers may be aware that the Transcendental Meditation Org is being investigated for "sock puppetry" in editing Wikipedia articles on TM, the Maharishi, and related topics. (Linked article is great. Great blog!)

Wikipedia pages are edited by "volunteers" who debate additions and changes, then vote on changes to be made. Apparently Wikipedia believes that TM true believers and employees are trying to ram through changes that favor the TM Org's agenda—to sell more expensive used mantras—by packing the editorial community with TMers.

So when it comes to a vote, TM sock puppets allegedly vote unanimously for the changes they want. Until recently, this has meant that TM pages reflected the sanitized history and marketing objectives of the TM Org.

But it appears, TM's day may be at hand.

In the past, Scientology was banned from Wikipedia for this kind of "sock puppetry." Although Wikipedia investigations move at a glacial pace, a decision on whether TM is cheating—and what the consequence for them should be—may be coming soon.

Wikipedia is only one battlefront in the fight to stop TM Org spam.

As TMFB editor Mike Doughney discussed in this great post, Transcendental Meditation Marketers—remember when we called them "Initiators"?—Tom Ball and Keith DeBoer have organized "Enlightened Bloggers" to jam the comments of every article published on the Web about TM with positive talking points—and to drown out any comments they do not agree with.

On Twitter, Transcendental Meditation Marketers post quotes and ads and then busily repost each other's posts to make it look as if there is a crowd of TM true believers. Try a Twitter search on @TomMcKinleyBall, @TMadvocate, @MeditationAVL, @TMChicago, or @TMQuadCities and you'll see what I mean.

But their use of the Internet to bamboozle the public has been going on for years. Authors from deep within the TM Org have been broadcasting articles that they write to as many free publishing sites as will take them.

Then they list these articles as "sources" in further articles, posts, and tweets that tout the benefits of TM—and its superiority to other meditation techniques, such as mindfulness.

This tweet crossed my TweetDeck this morning:

@MeditationAVL Please Retweet: Major W.G. Klokow encourages South African military to adopt Transcendental Meditation for peace http://bit.ly/61B387

Which was then dutifully reposted by Transcendental Meditation Marketer$ across the Internet.

Two seconds with the Google reveals that the article was written by a TM employee, David Leffler, director of Maharishi U's Center for Advanced Military Science, and Major W.G. Klokow, a long-time TMer from South Africa.

Using a little Google trick that Mike Doughney taught me, I searched to find how many times the first sentence of the article appears on the Web. ("The term Invincible Defence Technology (IDT) has been around for some time now." Remember to click on "repeat the search with the omitted results included.")

More than 30 times. They've published the same article over 30 times—and now feel confident in referring to it as a "source."

This kind of "publishing" "research" or "opinion" then citing your own article as a "source" for further articles is essentially a form of "astroturfing."

They're right. Transcendental Meditation is not a religion.

They're a multi-billion-dollar business with paid employees backed up by PR, Sales, Marketing, and PsyOps divisions.

Peddlling freely available "techniques" at extremely expensive prices.

Is it any surprise they use an MO perfected by politicians, lobbyists, tobacco companies, and marketing consultants like Karl Rove to spread their advertising message?

J.

Whatever You Have Done, Whatever You Have Suffered...

In 1990, five years before I left the Transcendental Meditation Org, I briefly dated a ravishing TM Governor.

She was radiant. Within as well as without. Bright. Creative. Open. Frighteningly articulate. I was insane for her.

Real moth-and-flame stuff.

She had led a challenging life, enduring abuses before and during her career as an insider in the TM Org.

One day, bubbling up out of no where, she shared with me she had had an affair with a married man. He had set her up in an apartment, covered her expenses.

"I was a prostitute," she said simply. And looked me straight in the eye.

I really lucked out. I didn't argue with her. I didn't dismiss or diminish her feelings. Even though I wouldn't characterize what she described as prostitution. Or shameful.

In one of those rare moments of grace we experience from time to time, I sat quietly for some moments.

Our silence was soft as a breeze, soothing.

Then I heard someone say softly:

Whatever you have done, whatever you have suffered, it's part of who you are today. And today—I love you.

Her face relaxed. She smiled.

It was my voice we had heard.

I learned something precious that day. I began the long journey to forgiving myself.

I had stumbled on a truth.

Knowing her past didn't change who she was in my heart.

Not one bit.

Like many of us spiritual-abuse veterans, I found it surprisingly easy—in time—to forgive the Maharishi as my guru, the leaders of his movement, and my fellow TM teachers.

Learning to forgive myself? Staggering.

Even knowing it was all a con, I was wracked with guilt, feelings of disloyalty. Above all, the fear that they were right. The only reason I abandoned the TM Org and Heaven on Earth was there was something monstrously wrong with me.

Without our conversation on a gentle early-spring afternoon 20 years ago next month, I'm not sure I could have ever achieved self-forgiveness.

It's my hope that every veteran of Spiritual or Cultic Abuse will have such a moment of clear, glimmering, dumbfounding revelation.

And will begin forgiving themselves in that moment.

J.

Crossposted on FaceBook

White Folk screwing Natives again? With Transcendental Meditation? Shame, David Lynch!

Many may not know this, but the Transcendental Meditation movement, with the help of David Lynch, is pursuing Native American chiefs to convert them to TM—and associated products.

According to an insider message I received, they are telling chiefs that the Maharishi once said the USA's "enlightenment" will come when Native Americans start TM. The insider claims 22 tribal elders want their tribes to do TM.

As is usual, the message ended with an appeal for funds, saying that while Government funds to subsidize Natives learning funds are on the way—there's an EMERGENCY need to raise $150,000 US in the NEXT TWO WEEKS to keep the program alive.

See, our tax dollars aren't being squandered enough on TM's violations of the separation of Church and State.

Links were provided to David Lynch Foundation or call 1 (323) 874-2467.

Operators are standing by!!!

And the difference between TM's efforts and past attempts to mass convert Native Americans to white religions is different precisely how?

At least they won't throw pox-infected blankets at Natives.

Just useless, fecal-contaminated Ayurvedic products.

J.

Celebrating Transcendental Meditation "End of Silence" & Our 3rd Anniversary!

The story is that the Maharishi used to take a week of silence starting with his birthday on January 12. Following his silence -- about which we will write more this week -- the TM faithful used to have a huge celebration of the "End of Silence." Each year from the 70s until his death in 2008, the Maharishi would announce the theme for his Movement in the coming year: "The Year of the World Plan," "The Year of Invincibility for Every Nation," those sort of modest goals (listed here for your reading pleasure.)

We launched TMFB 3 years ago on January 12, 2007 with "Happy Birthday, MMY, You Old Sod!" Since our launch, we've been visited 182,000 times, by 72,000 "Absolute Unique Visitors"; published 787 articles, built a thriving community through an uncountable scads of comments, and generally had a grand old time as we sought to inform and warn our readers -- as well as entertain with the spice of satire.

We thought about kicking off an Anniversary Celebration last week, but, given our mission, somehow it just felt right to Celebrate the End of Silence. (Ooooh! Spooooky!)

So want to invite you to a week of raucous noise making, with articles like "10 Worst TM Predictions" and "Hate-Mail-Palooza."

We will even have a contest or two, like "Karma Anti-Yogi of the Year" and "The Most Bizarre TM-Sponsored Site" -- with prizes for believers and critics alike.

Most of all we want to have fun -- but stop this short of outright cheesy.

If you long to be hip after all those years rounding your brains out, check back here daily for our latest installment.

Be there or be square!

J.

Transcendental Meditation: Which Video Doesn't Belong?

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

1. Transcendental Meditation "Raja" John Hagelin as he speaks to TM faithful in a monthly Governor's chat, May 24 2009; edited and posted December 15, 2009.
2. Heaven's Gate leader "Do" introducing prospective members to his group. Talk prior to 1998; posted June 13, 2008.
3. Two Transcendental Meditation members testifying to its effects in their lives; shinedmdigitaltv interview, October 02, 2009.
4. Two Heaven's Gate members discussing their impending mass suicide; taped ~1998, posted August 15, 2009.
5. "Sri Sri" Ravi Shankar speaking to Art of Living members. Date of talk unknown; posted September 19, 2007.
6. Art of Living insider and Miss Universe Canada 2009, Ketevan Chigogidze, testifying to Ravi Shankar's effect on her life; recorded ~2009, posted May 09, 2009.
7. "Quantum Physicist," President, David Lynch Foundation, and TM "Raja" John Hagelin speaking about TM to the public. Posted by meditationchannel May 09, 2009.

How Transcendental Meditation REALLY Works

Corresponding with an emailer recently, it came home to me that many people are not aware of the wealth of material about TM insider teachings already exposed on the Internet. So from time to time, I thought I'd post some golden oldies that TMFB readers may have overlooked.

Linked below is a transcription of "Soma and the Gods" taken from testimony in the Kropinski trial. This videotape is one of a handful that have become infamous in the TM movement because of their secrecy: It is only shown to TM teachers on the heavily regimented Teacher Training Course (TTC). For many years copies of this tape were not even allowed to enter the continental US.

For good reason! Much like the Church of Scientology's OT materials, "Soma and the Gods" lays out the Maharishi's theology in a way that the public is not deemed "ready" for by the TM org.

According to participants in the Kropinski trial, this tape -- along with the entire TTC catalog -- appeared mysteriously on someone's doorstep one day. Since then the tape has been used by plaintiffs in court cases to prove that the TM movement had a religious, specifically Hindu, agenda -- largely because it's one of the few times the Maharishi was captured on tape talking about worshipping the Vedic Gods. (Of course today, the TM movement sells Hindu sacrifices, yagyas or yajnas, to Ganesh, Lakshmi, and other Gods for thousands of dollars without batting an eye! Interestingly, "Post-Vedic yajñas, where milk products, fruits, flowers, cloth and money are offered, are called "yaga"[1], homa or havana," according the Wikipedia link. Sounds a lot like the puja used for TM initiation.)

But the true significance of "Soma and the Gods" is much larger. And the theology that the Maharishi espouses is not Hinduism. It is much more idiosyncratic -- and bizarre.

In a nutshell, the Maharishi describes a parasitic relationship between TMers and the Vedic Gods. TMers produce the magical chemical Soma in their guts -- but it isn't something they can use directly. The Vedic Gods, principally Indra, descend from Heaven and feed on the Soma in the TMers' belly. In return for this primitive relationship, the Gods grant all manner of boons. TMers become successful, happy, prosperous, and develop supernormal abilities.

Unbeknownst to non-TM teachers, the entire TM program can be understood through this simple model.

We practice yogic asanas and pranayama to clear the channels through which Soma will flow. We repeat the name of our own personal "Ishta" (God) to summon Him or Her. Advanced TMers practice the sidhis to "stir" the Soma and further clear channels. We read verses from the Rig Veda's Ninth Mandala that literally invite the Gods by name to feast on the Soma produced in our bodies: "Flow, Soma, in a most sweet and exhilirating stream, effused for Indra to drink.... Be the lavish giver of wealth, most bounteous, the destroyer of enemies, bestow on us the riches of the affluent." And we take Ayurvedic potions and pills believing we will produce "extra" or "more refined" soma.

An anecdote from a former Maharishi International University (MIU/MUM) professor:

On my Governor Training Course, after we had rounded and rounded and rounded for three months, MMY [the Maharishi] finally called to answer our questions. I asked what we should expect from endlessly reading the Ninth Mandala of the Rig Veda and I never forgot his reply: "It will become a living reality."

To my knowledge, this vision is the Maharishi's alone.

The Rig and Sama Vedas themselves describe the process of making a beverage, soma, by grinding and brewing a certain medicinal plant -- or alternatively by feeding a plant to a cow and then imbibing either its milk or urine. James Allegro speculated some years back that soma was actually the hallucinogenic mushroom amanita muscara, a prevalent inebriator among all Aryan cultures. Perhaps. But even in modern day India, there are hotris who perform the Soma sacrifice using the humble soma plant, and imbibing the juice.

Nowhere in all of Vedic literature have we found a single reference to soma as a substance produced in the human stomach and fed upon by Gods. Except in this product of the Maharishi's imagination.

Many sources from the inner circles of the TM movement have already reported on the Maharishi's preoccupation with the influence of other people's thoughts (stress), purity of food (genetic engineering), and apparent preoccupation with "enemies" (re: the CIA and AMA). The unforgettable image of ravening Gods jostling each other to feed at the stomachs of TMers around the world to get their share of the mythical Soma seems a conclusive indication that TM theology may simply be the by-product of the Maharishi's distrubed mind.

• Transcription of "Soma and the Gods"
• Opening court proceedings of "Soma and the Gods"
• Expert testimony on "Soma and the Gods"

A few highlights:

• It's clear from the legal wrangling that TM's lawyer was struggling to control how the jury perceived "Soma and the Gods." Those familiar with the TM movement recognize this as a movement "tic," never trust the conclusions the "unenlightened" public may draw -- always frame and interpret the Maharishi's words before and after they are presented.
• It may not be clear from context that "expert witness" John Farrow was a long-time TM/Maharishi devotee, active in the inner circles. The TM-published Collected Papers are littered with his TM-sponsored research.
• As revealed here, the Maharishi had no legal connection to any TM movement organization -- not as an officer, director, or employee. Nonetheless, he ruled with an iron-hand by force of personality and religious devotion to him personally. (See the TM teacher's oath.)
• According to the judge, John Farrow acts as a "surrogate" for the Maharishi. Even in formal legal proceedings, the TM movement attempts to frame their theology carefully before hand, "putting the tape in its clearest context," rather than trusting to the unfiltered perception of the jury.
• Maharishi discusses Hindu devas as "very refined impulses of energy and intelligence" and refers to their finest vibrations as mantras. In the "New Jersey Court Case," the judge labeled this as overtly religious language -- not scientific concept. Most observers of the TM theology see this sort of "shadow speech" as a camouflaged attempt to discuss fundamentalist Hindu religious concepts without offending Western sensibilities.
• The Maharishi specifically talks about the Hindu God Indra as "that Agency, that force of nature which puts together the mind and the body." By extension, one might surmise that whenever the Maharishi talks about forces or laws of nature, that he is referring to the Gods. In fact, this equation is made explicitly for TM teachers and other insiders.
• Finest impulses of life: Another familiar TM/Maharishi substitution for "Gods."

Transcendental Meditation Fire Sale: More Prime Real Estate

This BusinessWeek article has the info on how TM slashed 33% off the asking price of their showcase Wall Street address for Global Country of World Peace.

While the group “could absolutely not be happier” with the building, a sale would benefit the non-profit’s charitable mission, Hagelin said in September. “Financial resources at that level would be a huge boost to us in fulfilling our various goals,” he said.

TMFB editor Mike Doughney recently speculated on a possible world-wide contraction of the Transcendental Meditation movement, as suggested by sales of a number of real estate holdings recently. He suggested this may be for the purposes of consolidating the movement in India.

Looking more likely every day....

J.

Taking the Fire to "Sri Sri" Ravi Shankar

Many readers may be aware that the self-styled "Sri Sri" Ravi Shankar started the Art of Living in the 80s -- as a spin off from Transcendental Meditation. The Maharishi and the TM movement roundly rejected him -- including a letter to all TM centers in 1990.

To those unaware of him, but involved with TM, the basic outlines of the story will sound eerily familiar: He claims to be the favorite disciple of his guru (the Maharishi); he claims to have rediscovered ancient Yogic techniques that will release stress and bring peace; he reveals his teachings and techniques through a series of expensive courses; he's founded a worldwide, largely volunteer organization to bring peace through these techniques; he flagrantly courts wealthy and influential devotees; and, the true cream of the jest, he took the name of his organization from the Maharishi's first book -- The Science of Being and Art of Living.

If you aren't seeing enough parallels with the Transcendental Meditation Org yet, I highly recommend reading a new blog, Confessions of a Guruholic, by an anonymous Art of Living insider.

Sounds a lot like my good old TM daze. What do you think?

J.

The Spawn of Transcendental Meditation: Toxic Positivity

I stumbled on a review of book about the dark-side of positivity on modern American culture. An excerpt:

Bright-sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America
By Barbara Ehrenreich
Metropolitan Books, Henry Holt: New York
Hardcover, 256 pages, $12.42
October 2009

In the middle of the first decade of the twenty-first century, positive thoughts were flowing out into the universe in unprecedented volumes, escaping the solar system, rippling through vast bodies of interstellar gas, dodging black holes, messing with the tides of distant planets. If anyone--deity or alien being--possessed the means of transforming these emanations into comprehensible form, they would have been overwhelmed by images of slimmer bodies, larger homes, quick promotions, and sudden acquisitions of great wealth.

But the universe refused to play its assigned role as a "big mail order department." In complete defiance of the "law of attraction," long propounded by the gurus of positive thinking, things were getting worse for most Americans, not better.

---

Happy talk is killing us. Faux cheerfulness is blinding us. Optimism is making us delusional. And America is knee-deep in the happy happy joy joy, always looking on the bright side of life schtick, has been from the 19th century on, and Barbara Ehrenreich is, to put it mildly, so over it.

While "positive thinking" has been a part of the American scene at least since Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich, it seems to have reached epidemic proportions in the modern New Age, fundamentalist Christian, self-help, and related movements.

Perhaps, to some extent, influenced by the American strain of "positivity," the Maharishi almost certainly would have agreed with Hill's most famous mantra: "What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve." (Paul Mason writes about the negative impact on the TM Movement of Maharishi's admonition to "tell the sweet truth" in his biography of Maharishi.)

The dark-side of American positivity, as Ehrenreich is reported to discuss in her book, is a "blame-the-victim" mentality: Everything that happens to one is caused by one's thoughts and beliefs, including cancer, poverty, depression, genocide, ....

In the Transcendental Meditation Movement, this belief also led to a phobia about "negativity." In my experience, true believers reacted with horror to any doubts, complaints, reports of TM not working, bad news -- and most especially "negative" persons. The net result was people who were in any kind of discomfort (and talked about it, foolishly), were not only not offered help -- they were shunned!

I wrote on the old Trancenet, that when I was in the grip of this belief, if I saw a man lying in the street, not only would I not try to help, I would cross the street to avoid picking up his "stress" or "negative karma."

Many, if not most, groups that critics label cults have similar doctrines, such as Scientology's "pulling it in" (explained in the first comment rejecting a puff piece about Scientology). Sometimes referred to as Lifton's "doctrine over person," it's easy to see how this concept benefits a toxic group: it's a thought-stopper that blocks any doubts, it tends to isolate any critics or doubters and keeps them from infecting the faithful, it increases dependency on the leader and the group, it redirects any doubters' justified anger away from the leader and towards punishing themselves, it tends to force dissenters out of the group and marginalizes them.

It seems to me that this positivity-as-anti-negativity is/was rampant in the TM Movement. And it is perpetuated in TM's spin-offs: Ravi Shankar's Art of Living, Deepak Chopra, "Dr." Johnny Gray, Beverly Barbara DeAngelis, a host of others, large and small.

As a therapist, I have no problem with positivity. (I am greatly influenced by the "strengths-based perspective.") A realistic, positive appraisal of one's strengths, accomplishments, values, and dreams seems to be a minimum requirement for self-esteem and, thus, mental health. And, it seems to be a pre-requisite to even contemplating change or action leading to new success. I've never known anyone to succeed who is convinced they will fail.

On the other hand, I have no problem with "negativity." How can we grow and change without some understanding of the challenges we face?

The problem with either positivity or negativity is when they are out of balance. When they become obsessions -- or phobias.

Guilt and shame, which so many of us privately experienced in TM and similar groups, are not good motivators. They are frequently toxic, destructive, corrosive.

And blind positivity readily leads to unrealistic expectations -- even delusion, as some of us discovered.

Or so it seems to me. I look forward to your thoughts in the comments below.

J.

Cross-posted on Facebook

Now for Something Completely Different (?!)

My assistant Sarah has a personal interest in autism. Yesterday she passed on an article she thought I might be interested in. It was about allegations of cult-like behavior by some groups offering "cures" for autism.

I was amazed by the article. Thanks, Sarah!

Not about TM, I know. But sometimes it's easier to see the manipulation in someone else's group than one's own. And then begin to understand more deeply what went on in our own experience with TM.

I'm wondering if readers will identify similarities to the TM Movement?

It's a read I highly recommend. And I look forward to your comments — whether you see similarities or not.

Identifying and Avoiding Autism Cults

Cross-posted on Facebook

Transcendental Meditation Goal: Religious Gov't for Every Nation

I thought about making this another installment in "Yes, We Are No Religion." But given the wave of religious fundamentalism sweeping the world — leading to hatred, death, and war — I thought it important to pass on this disturbing message minus the snark.

Von: Global Country Switzerland
An: 14 Maharishi Jyotish and Yagya Programmes
Gesendet: Sonntag, den 8. November 2009, 22:57:36 Uhr
Betreff: FW: participate in Maharishi's Global Plan


Dear Friends,

The spiritual counterpart for your country lies in India. Each country is connected to one of the twelve jyotir lingas in India, the seat of Shiva, the eternal silence at the basis of creation. Reviving the age-old knowledge about the spiritual connection of every country with the Jyotirlingas in India and the creation of 48 Brahmananda Saraswati Nagars is Maharishi¹s greatest gift for humanity. The following website gives you more information about Maharishi's global plan to transform every country into a Vedic country:

http://www.mgcwp. org/jyotir_ ling/POWERPOINT/ JYOTIRLING. htm

You are cordially invited in Maharishi¹s global plan to create a Vedic society everywhere and enjoy Maharishi¹s blessings and the support of all the Laws of Nature. If you have any questions or you want to participate in this grand undertaking please contact us via GlobalCountrySwitze rland@maharishi. net.

Bowing before Maharishi and the Holy Tradition of Vedic Masters we send you our best wishes for life in fulfilment.

Jai Guru Dev

[Emphasis added.]

Since the late 60s, the Transcendental Meditation movement has claimed not be a religion or religious — despite conclusive evidence to the contrary. Based on that claim, they promoted TM as a secular practice to the public, which in turn has led to TM being adopted in public schools, the justice system, the military, research publications — even receiving government funds. For reasons best known to TM leaders, they base their claims to be nonreligious on a distinction between Vedism and Hinduism — a distinction without a difference, similar to distinguishing between Early Christianity and Modern Christianity. Both are religions, one based on the other.

My suspicion is TM simply hopes to confuse people who don't understand what the Vedas are.

Just as the ultimate goal of some Christian Fundamentalists is to make the U.S. — and ultimately all nations — horribly repressive "Christian" theocracies, the TM Movement's goal is to bring Hindu/Vedic rule to the entire world. Replete with Horse Sacrifices, Shiva worship, a return to monarchy, and a tyrannical morality that punishes the exercise of freedoms the developed world is based on: religion, sexuality, democracy, so many others.

I suspect this was the Maharishi's goal for a very long time, perhaps from the beginning.

When you hear of Transcendental Meditation being taught to public school children, invading the justice/prison system, publishing questionable research, and receiving taxpayer funds from your government, I hope you will think of this internal memo from one of TM's "Global Countries."

I hope this message will be shared with every person with an interest in the separation between Church and State, with school-age children — and, especially, anyone working to stem the tide of fundamentalist-fueled hatred, violence, and tyranny. It's my especial hope it will be shared with the ACLU, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, religious leaders, and the press.

If you have any such contacts, would you pass on this post?

Please note that, although there is no copyright accompanying this email, in the US any creative work is assumed to be copyrighted by its author(s) and is subject to legal protection.

I present the entire text of this email in the belief it conforms to the Fair-Use Exception granted to news, critical, educational, and satirical works.

It's just too important to publicize this message — and tear the mask off Transcendental Meditation's claims to be not religious.

J.

Cross-posted on Facebook

How Could I Believe Such Stupid Stuff?

Look, you don’t have to be lazy, crazy, or stupid to join a cult.

If you are, they don’t want you.

They want as many rich and talented people as they can sink their hooks into.

It’s easy to stay out of a cult.

Never be tired. Or scared. Too young. Too old. Never get divorced. Or married. Don’t strive for success. Don’t ever fail. Never hope for world peace. Never feel anger at injustice. Don’t be too rich – or too poor. Never experience depression. Never aim for great happiness. Don’t get sick. Don’t seek.

In short, never be vulnerable.

You don’t have to be unusual to get sucked in. You just have to be human.

I joined my meditation group to clear my mind and improve my grades. Twenty-three years and $150,000 later, I realized my mistake.

I screwed up: I wanted something better in life.

And someone was happy to sell it to me.

J.

Transcendental Meditation Teacher Training Course Slips

According to an email I received yesterday, John Hagelin has slipped the date of the next North American TTC a month "in order to allow time for more people to apply." It is now to take place October 16.

What if they held a Teacher Training Course and nobody came?

Academic credit for TTC is available through Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa for up to 24 units. For students at MUM, these units can be used as elective credit towards any undergraduate or graduate degree or applied toward an undergraduate major in Maharishi Vedic Science. [emphasis added]

I wonder if other institutions that truly are about higher education will see the relevance of memorizing parrot-speak about mumbling a mantra toward earning a degree in business, for instance.

Transcendental Meditation Teacher Training Goes Through Changes

An anonymous TMFB reader has sent me an email promoting an upcoming Transcendental Meditation^® Teacher Training Course (TTC) to be offered at Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa, from September 30, 2009 to February 17, 2010

Some info from the email:

• "Please feel free to forward this message to any Meditator and Sidha you know."
  
• It appears the structure of Phase I, II, and III has been done away with. Citizen Sidhas will become teachers after a single, 4 1/2-month course. (There are special arrangements being made for applicants who do not have the sidhis.)
  
• "Each course participant is required to indicate before the course which Maharishi Invincibility Center they will associate with after graduation."
  
• "There will be separate courses for men and ladies." No mention of special arrangements for couples.
  
• "TTC fee is US $14,500." Courses in the 19070s cost about $4,000, however allowing for inflation, the course actually costs less than in the past.
  
• "Transportation to and from the course, visa application fee, health care insurance, and any other personal expenses are the responsibility of each course participant."
  
• "For more information about the course,... please contact the following: For US citizens: education@tm.org; For Canadian citizens: worldpeace@maharishi.ca."

Please note that TMFB does not recommend involvement with any Transcendental Meditation program. This material is presented only to educate and to spur discussion.

J.

With our very best wishes

Jai Guru Dev

International Course Office

Legal Intimidation Transcendental Meditation's New Spiritual Technique?

In the last few months, there have been a number of reports of various arms of the TM Org threatening legal action against critics, usually for copyright or trademark infringement.

My webinar protesting teaching TM in public schools was threatened by Bill Goldstein, who claimed to represent MVED. This resulted in me canceling the webinar.

Natural Stress Relief USA reports being pursued by TM Org lawyers claiming trademark infringement.

Jim Nemmers, claiming to represent Maharishi Foundation, Ltd. demanded we delete TMFB posts that he felt infringed copyright.

Steve Sashen gives a report of how his Web site was threatened:

I received a cease-and-desist letter from the same organization about my post at http://www.meditationtruth.com/l...ee- instructions

Their original argument had some merit, so I made changes to the post to make it clear that:

a) That you can find the TM instructions in books and online at no cost
b) I wasn't teaching TM
c) The technique on the post isn't TM

They also took issue with my opinions (shared by a number of well-respected publications) that the TM "studies" were not as rigorous as they are presented and, more likely, don't prove what the TM people want them to prove.

And, similarly, they didn't like that I compared the simple mantra meditation on that post to TM (another mantra meditation) saying that I couldn't PROVE that it could be as effective.

I wasn't aware that I had to PROVE an opinion (I don't).

Their last contact insisted that I put a "disclaimer" on my site which looked a lot more like an AD for TM than a disclaimer.
Steven Sashen

We are going to track these threats and publicize them as one means to fight the TM Org's attempts at what look like intimidation.

If you know of any individuals or groups that have recently received threatening communications from TM Org representatives, please post them in the comments below or email me directly at jmknapp53@gmail.com .

I am organizing a Twitter campaign to publicize TM's legal shenanigans. Search for #TM_Critics.

I see strong parallels between TM's apparent attempts to silence critics with similar efforts of Scientology.

Is that really the model that TM leaders wish to emulate?